A Different Kind Of Life
by xXTron'sGirl13Xx
Summary: "So love brings you pain Ms. Tanner?" He looked at me with a serious face. "You fear the feeling of being with a lover." "You make it sound so simple." I spat at him. "Like nothing could bring love to an end." I was furious. How could he think it was so easy to love someone, it brought more pain than it did happiness. "Than obviously you haven't found the right lover yet."
1. What Brings You Pain?

"Tanner and you three, down here with me right now! You two go down and cover the next exit!" Commisioner Gordon said frantically.

I made my way over to the manhole and followed in after Gordon swiftly. Who in their right minds would crawl down here? Oh yeah thats right, criminals. Once I touched down to the bottom floor I slid over closer to Gordon to make room for the 3 SWAT team members coming down with us.

I didn't know what Gordon was looking for so I followed closely behind him as we started to make our way down the pitch black hallway. All of us reached for our flashlights that we had and turned them on. The city really needed to do something about the lighting down here. Sure there were lights every few feet but very few of them worked anymore.

I saw Gordon pull out his handgun and I instantly cursed at myself for leaving my pistol in the cruiser. What was I thinking? I was a cop for crying out loud! Well I just hoped that we wouldn't run into a situation where I would need my gun. I mean why would I need it when I had three guys carrying assault rifles behind me?

Back from the manhole I heard talking. It sounded like John was talking again. When did that guy ever shut up? I knew better than most about his curiosity in situations. He was like a five year old. Why are we here? Why aren't we following them? I mean the guy was a good cop but he got annoying. That's why the GCPD just had to assign him and I to patrols together.

The next thing I knew gunshots were being fired. Two from the SWAT team dropped instantly. Gordon grabbed me and pushed me at the wall on the other side of the hall. There was a ledge just big enough to hide behind. I scooted down the wall and the Commissioner slid in. The shots from our other team member were soon lost and Gordon fired a few shots over his shoulder.

Then some type of explosive went off and fire was everywhere. It didn't quite make it beyond our ledge though, thank god. Gordon looked at me and I could see the fear in his eyes as he panted some. How old was this guy anyways? In his 50's? I was sure he was old enough to not be going down into tunnels and shooting off guns at the enemy.

He checked the corner with his flashlight quickly and turned to look at me before looking down the other way to make sure no one else was there. But, as he checked his corner I heard something move in the darkness, then everything went black.

* * *

When I started to see fuzzy images I realized I was being dragged through the tunnels I was in. Two guys were on either side of me holding me up by my jacket and arms and from all the noise they were making I had a feeling Commissioner Gordon was in front of me.

My feet started to hit the ground in a quick fashion. So I was going down stairs. I started to groggily look around to see if I could memorize the area just in case of the slim chance that I made it out of here alive.

I saw men, sitting on the floors and hanging from ceilings, There seemed to be some kind of construction work going on in the pit that I was in. Also, the sound of rushing water filled my ears.

After being dragged a little bit farther I was dropped to the ground completely. Looking to my right I saw Gordon laying beside me, wincing in pain from the looks of it. Suddenly a voice came from above my head, it was menacing and rough it almost sounded filtered somehow.

"Why are you here?"

Our captors kicked us and one said "Answer him!" I cried out in pain from the blow to my side.

"I was asking you." The man grumbled. I could look up and see one of the men have a look of confusion hit his face.

"I-It's the police commissioner and-" He paused a moment looking at me, "One of his officers." He looked pleased with himself for bringing us to this cave in the sewers.

Then I heard the boots of the man they had brought us to scuff the floor as he stood up.

"And you brought them down here?" He almost seemed amused in his response. Another guy then pitched in, "We didn't know what to do, we just thought-" The man of authority walked forward and into my line of site. He was masked and very built. He had muscles everywhere. He was shirtless and had not a hair on his body. He was very tall and I could see why you could easily be afraid of him.

"You panicked, and your weakness has cost us the life of three others." He said very matter-a-factly. "He's a-" One of my captors started but was then cut off when the masked man grabbed him by the next with one of his hands, squeezing the life out of him. If this man was capable of this much there was no telling what he would do to us.

"Search them. Then I will kill you."

Two hands started patting me down and dug into my pant pockets. He then moved over to the Commissioner and did the same, but he pulled out a few sheets of paper from his coat pocket and took his gun. Giving the objects to the masked man he preceded to unfold the papers to glance over them.

Then Gordon flipped over the edge of the railing beside him and fell into the rush of water waiting for him below, abandoning me in the process. Then shots were fired and yelling ensued as Gordon floated off to who knows where.

I was then pulled up to my feet and away from the edge. They probably thought that if Gordon could do it why couldn't I? I pulled at my hands trying to brake free but was pulled back closer to the two men that held me.

"He's dead." A man carrying a rifle said to the masked man. The tall man turned around, "So show me his body."

The other then seemed to panic, "The water flows to anyone of the outflows, we'll never find him."

Another henchman took something off his waistband and proceeded to click a button on it. The menacing one took it and shoved it onto the other man, "Then follow him." The man with the rifle seemed confused, "Follow him?" A gunshot rang in the air as the man was shot and proceeded to fall over the side of the railing just as Commissioner Gordon did. The masked man went to go back to doing whatever he was doing when one of the men holding me started to talk.

"Boss, What about her?" Great. Now it was my turn to die. The man got up from his position at the desk and walked over to me studying me as he went. "Ah yes, the officer. And your name is?" The two men holding me let go and backed away as the other man came closer. Like hell I was telling this guy my name. Then I was being pushed to the wall, being held around my neck by a man with a deadly grip. "Elise!" I blurted out. He slackened his grip on me.

"And does a last name come with the first?" He looked at me intensely with his blue eyes, almost daring me to speak again. "Tanner. Elise Tanner." I said slowly. He came even closer to me. "Well now that your down here Officer Tanner it looks like your going to have to stay." And now I was going to be kept here, Great. He called off to one of his henchmen, "Barsad, take her to a room." The man that gave him the device came over and took my arm starting to pull me in the direction of the exit.

"Wait!" I was stopped and the masked man turned to look at me yet again. "What's your name?" He walked close enough to be arms length away from me and said, "You Officer may call me Bane." I gave him the best attempt of a smile that I could give him. "And Officer, since we are asking questions I have one final one to ask before you leave." I looked up at him expectantly. What more does he want to know now?

"What brings you pain?" He had amusement in his eyes. Why would you ask someone that? So I replied quickly.

"Nothing."

As Barsad began to drag me away I swear I heard Bane utter three words.

"We will see."

* * *

So what do yah think? It comes from an idea I got for a story while I watched TDKR! I can't wait to type up more! Review and tell me what you think! Pretty-please! It would mean the world to me. :) anyways, till next time,

xXTron'sGirl13Xx


	2. Gotham's Reckoning

Being stuck in the same room for two days gives you a whole lot of time to think about the important things in life.

When I was led into "my room" in Bane's hideout I didn't think that they would keep me locked away for this amount of time. I guess I was stupid for thinking that, I mean I am technically the prisoner here. What I was surprised about was that the GCPD hadn't got a tip on this new masked murderer.

How does one take an army of men and hide them down in the sewers of Gotham city without being noticed? It seemed like a very hard task to me, and not to mention that they were constantly expanding the place. Always making more rooms, more like prison cells in my opinion, or making the living area, as I like to call it, bigger.

Now that I think about it I wonder just where in Gotham I was. I thought back to the two nights a go when I first went underground. If it wasn't for me getting knocked out I probably could have somehow figured out just where in Gotham I was located.

So when Gordon abandoned me he left me all by myself in this damp room. The room was rather dole. I was being imprisoned in a room made of cement it was identical to all the rooms around me. It had the cement gray walls that seemed to come closer to me with every breath I took. I had a small twin sized bed stuffed in the corner with sheets, a blanket, and a pillow on top. There was a leak in the corner closest to the jail cell type door.

I had absolutely no privacy in this place. All of Bane's men would walk by to go to their rooms and the cat-calls would begin. It annoyed me to no end. But luckily my cell was locked at all times.

I got to go to the bathroom three times the first day. Barsad escorted me on all three of those times. So when a man I had never seen before came to my cell with the keys and told me it was time I go to the bathroom I felt a little odd.

"Where's Barsad?" I asked. "He is out at the moment." the man answered.

He took me down into the main hall where I saw all of Bane's henchmen sitting around cleaning guns, doing construction, or eyeing me carefully.

When I got to the bathroom I went in and did what I had to do quickly then came out. As I walked back down the hall I saw a group of men assembling in front of Bane. I hadn't seen him since the other day and in that time the way he carried himself had changed drastically.

He was obviously deep in focus from what I could tell. Ordering people on what to do. I guess they were going to go make their debut into the world. I continued to look at the group of men trying to figure out what they were going to do as I walked by.

Then Bane looked up from where he was looking and his eyes landed on me.

A shiver ran down my spine. His gaze was so menacing. He showed you that your life could end in a matter of seconds, and just as soon as he looked at me he looked back down at the plans he held in his hands.

I then began to walk through the cell hall and walked into my room as I went and sat down on my bed the man looked down at me and nodded as he locked my door back up.

I then sat back and leaned against the wall behind me. How was I supposed to survive in here? What did Bane want from me anyways? I knew if I wasn't needed he would have just strangled me like he did to his other followers that didn't do as they were told.

I wondered if Gordon was alive. I wondered if anyone surfaced from the manhole I went down into. I wondered if John Blake was cruising around without me sitting in the passenger's seat. Everything was probably running just like normal in Gotham because who would notice the loss of a girl like me?

I had no family left. My parents had died when I was a kid. They had been in a shooting down at Gotham Central Bank.

Thats when I said I wanted to join the force. To prevent that from happening to other people and I progressed well through the ranks. Gordon treated me like a daughter and I guess you could say my closest thing to a friend was John Blake, even though he did talk just a little bit to much.

Hours went by, or maybe minutes, you could never tell when you where bored out of your mind, and then the same guy came back to my cell.

He said that this time I got dinner after my little excursion to the bathroom. He also gave me a fresh batch of clothes, which were remarkably close to my size, actually a little baggy. It was just a plain black t-shirt and a pair of gray yoga pants. Wonder where they had women's clothes laying around here. I took them gladly though.

I changed out of my police attire and slipped on the clothing then walked out of the bathroom carrying all my stuff. When I got back to my cell He gave me a tray of food. It had a turkey sandwich and a bag of chips with a bottle of water on it. I nodded and said a quick thank you before beginning to eat it quickly.

Then the waiting began. After I was fed they usually waited about an hour then gave me my last bathroom break of the day. As time past I realized they didn't come to get me like they did the other night.

Instead the halls progressively got quieter almost like no one was there. I then laid down on my bed hoping to maybe sleep some of the time away. I was out like a light.

* * *

I was angrily awoken by Barsad shaking me. "Elise quickly get up." I opened my eyes and groggily sat up. I heard voices echoing through the hallways. They were back. And just when I was starting to like the quietness that came with being alone.

"Bane wants to see you. He will arrive shortly. Come."

I clearly wasn't fully awake because my mouth started moving before I could process what I was going to say. "Can I go to the bathroom first?" He nodded and started to pull me down the hallway. I quickly used the bathroom then walked to where Barsad led me.

We went past the place I had been brought to the first time I met Bane into a room just off the side. It held a full size bed a side table and a tv hanging from the wall across from it. This must be Bane's room.

Why couldn't we just meet out in his work area. Something told me this wasn't going to end well.

Once Barsad left I noticed that the tv was turned on to GCN. The headline said "GOTHAM STOCK EXCHANGE ATTACKED BY MASKED MAN!" So thats what Bane was up too. What did he want at the stock exchange?

As the woman babbled on about the details I watched the security camera's images being flashed onto the screen. It showed Bane beating up the security guards at the front of the Exchange. That was when Bane walked in.

"Ah, I'm guessing I no longer need to tell you about my recent success now."

I jumped and turned to look at him. Putting on the bravest face I could muster I looked up at him. "What's a guy like you need in a stock exchange?"

He looked down at me and glared. "If you don't mind Officer Tanner I think it will be I that will be doing the talking." I looked down at my shoes and listened. "Ms. Tanner what do you know about the Batman?" What did I know about the Batman?

"All I know about him is what you see on the news." I looked up and saw him pacing around the other side of the room.

"And Commissioner Gordon is he still in contact with the Batman?" How was I supposed to know this. Batman hadn't been seen in years. Why was this so important now?

Then I heard the tv again. "And With the arrival of this new masked man in Gotham came the Batman. Is he back? Will we be seeing more of him? All the info after the break!" I looked at Bane. "What? A guy like you scared of the Bat?"

He came at me all of the sudden holding me against the wall. "You Officer need to learn some discipline. I asked you a question. When one is asked a question all they need to do is simply answer. Is that understood?" His voice had turned into somewhat of a growl. I looked down at his hands that were pressing me into the wall. How many people had died by those hands? How much blood had been shed by them?

I looked up directly into his eyes, "To my knowledge Gordon hasn't seen the Bat since he killed Harvey Dent. Sir." I said in a rather mocking tone.

He pressed harder and pushed me up the wall so that we were eye to eye. "Your tone is not appreciated Miss. Maybe you need to learn some manners before talking again." He then punched me in the stomach sending me down to the floor in pain. I wouldn't show it though, I was better than that.

I looked up at him to see him taking another blow to me by kicking in the leg. He then stomped down onto the place he had kicked me earning a thundering crack from the bone underneath. I yelped out.

"You say you know no pain Ms. Tanner. But what is this I see now?" He had bent down to my level looking down at my leg then looking at me. "This." I said looking down at my leg. "This isn't pain. This is hurting. You of all people should know the difference. Why is it you wear the mask again? I can only imagine." My mouth earned me a punch to the face. As he rose from the ground he strongly said, "I will break you." Only if I knew what he had ment by that at the time.

As Barsad came in the room to carry me away I shouted questions at Bane venomously. "What Do you want? Why Gotham? Who are you?"

He simply turned to me and said, "Why my dear, I am Gotham's Reckoning." And with that Barsad carried me out of the room and down the hall onto a table where a man took my leg in gentle hands and begin to set it back into place.

I pondered what his answer could mean, Gotham's Reckoning? I guess I would find out in time.

The doctor pulled at my leg once more and that is when I fell into darkness.

* * *

What did yah think? Leave a review! And next time you get more Bane time! :) anyways so honestly what do you guys think? Is the characterization right? Is Bane Mean enough? Is Elise likable? Anything ya'll wanna see? Sound off in the reviews! Or PM Me :) Anyways thanks for all the favorites and alerts! They made my day! And the two reviews I got where the cherry on top! Until next time,

xXTron'sGirl13Xx


	3. Finding a Saviour

It seemed to me that the doctor that Bane had hired knew a lot more about injuries then the doctors you found in a hospital. Most doctors would tell you it would take at least 4 months to fully recover from a broken leg. The doctor I had said that it would be done in two months if I did everything he asked from me. So I complied. It wasn't easy, let me tell you, in the week since I broke my leg I had already started some type of therapy to strengthen my bones.

Not only that had happened in the week though. In that time I had also been relocated to John Daggett's house, or former house, and let me tell you the place was nice. It had everything in it and just a bit. The design was very sleek and modern.

I was being watched over by two of Bane's men while Bane was away. What could he be doing now? No doubt the second step in his plan. Either way he seemed to know what he was doing.

While I was only being watched by two men I thought of a way to somehow escape. Of course my leg hindered me from making an escape but with the pain killers I was on I thought that maybe it could be possible.

So I started to watch for any routines the men had in their schedule. After four days of being there we kind of fell into a routine. I would wake up in the morning and eat breakfast in the kitchen. After that I would see the doctor who came up between the hours of 10 and 12 in the morning. After that we would eat lunch.

Once the doctor left I would usually go into the living area and watch tv for an hour or so. During my time I saw where the phones were located in the house. I didn't pay much attention to them so the guards wouldn't get suspicious. After dinner was served, not much of a dinner at all really, I went to my room and locked the door. I stayed up the second night I was there to see at what time the guards took shifts at. I would go into my room around 8 and shut the door. At 2 in the morning they made their switch.

Since I was close to the end of my hall and at the end there was exit to the stairs I thought that if I could sneak out when the guard went to wake the other up then I could probably get out and down the stairs considering we were only 3 stories up.

There was no doubt in my mind that I could make it out of the building considering you had to go all the way through the kitchen and living area and down a different hall to get to where the guards stayed. It usually took about 10 minutes for them to switch considering they woke each other up and got dressed and what not.

So I devised a plan. At dinner when we all ate together I would excuse myself to the bathroom. The idiots let me do it the first night I was there so why not again. Anyways the previous day I had figured out that there was a phone in the room that had a connecting door to my bathroom. If I could make it into the room and send out a phone call to someone at the GCPD to pick me up then I could maybe get out of here.

But who to call? I couldn't call Gordon. If he was even alive after the other night he was probably in a hospital recovering. I couldn't call the office, that would take to long. I didn't have Batman's number handily on speed dial so that only left one person who's number I knew by heart. John Blake, and god let us hope that he would listen and not ask questions for once.

Could it work? It could. Would it work was the real question.

Dinner came along the next night just as expected. I got a burnt grilled cheese sandwich and soup that looked like it had my old elementary school's mystery meat floating around in it. After about 10 minutes of silence and spoons clanking around on bowls I announced that I was going to the bathroom.

I walked normally, well as normally as you could on crutches, down the hall and into my bedroom. I rounded the corner that led to the bathroom and prayed to god that the other door didn't squeak or rattle when I opened it. I walked in the bathroom and quickly locked the door. I slowly turned the knob on the door parallel from my door and thanked the lord that it opened easily and quietly.

I got down on the floor and crawled as silently as I could over to the dresser holding the phone. Once I picked it up I quickly dialed Blake's number and began to hope that he would answer.

After three rings he picked up with a confused, "Hello?" I whispered harshly, "Blake, This Is Elise." I was cut off, "Jesus Elise where are you? Are you okay?" Now it was my turn to interrupt him.

"Just shut up and listen okay? I'm at John Daggett's apartment. You know the guy with that company? Anyways, I need you to be at the entrance to the building tonight! At two. Yes I know its early in the morning! But your my only hope here John! If I'm not down there within fifteen minutes of that time you get the hell out of there! You don't wanna deal with these people John!" I noticed I was getting louder and listened for any noise coming down the hall as I waited for Blake's reply.

"Okay I'll be there. You answer questions later okay?" He always had questions to ask. "That's fine John. I have to go now. Bye." I quickly hung the phone up and crawled back into the bathroom and closed the door. I picked up my crutches and flushed the toilet as I heard a knock on the door. "Hey, hurry up!" I washed my hands then limped out with my crutches in hand like nothing had happened.

As the man lead me back into the dining area I couldn't help but smile a little. This was my chance. I could get out of here. Hopefully Bane wouldn't come looking for me when he came back. But I would deal with that later.

After dinner I excused myself and hobbled to my room and began my wait. I turned on the tv and watched GCN tell us about how Bruce Wayne had plummeted into bankruptcy and that know would could find him, according to the news he had just disappeared. Just like me.

Apparently Bruce Wayne had signed on some stocks and was now in debt. It didn't take an idiot to figure out what had happened. Obviously Bane's stunt in the Stock Exchange was somehow related to this.

Also, the news talked of a John Daggett to be found dead in an alley two nights ago. Although they hadn't figured out who had killed him, he did have an extreme amount damage done to his neck. Again, wonder who that could be? Even if Daggett was dead he did have good taste in apartments, I'll give him that.

The news became very uneventful after that. After about two more hours I started to get restless. I couldn't go to sleep. If I set the alarm to wake me up that would be sure to alert the guard when he went to sleep. I went looking through the drawers to hopefully find something to do.

I was proved lucky when I found a drawer containing a few books on the other side of the room. I had to choose between Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights. I never had a huge liking for classic literature but I ended up picking Jane Eyre. It was a great story but it was to bad I would probably never finish it. Just a distraction for me, and it was a good one because before you know it it was almost 2. I crawled to the door and listened to the world outside of it.

There was some rustling and then I heard walking slowly making its way down the hall. I waited a minute then gently eased the door open. I hobbled down the hall as quickly as I could while still being quiet. When I got to the exit door I stood myself up and walked out and begin to make my decent.

Fear rushed through me hoping that they wouldn't come back quicker than usual and see me gone. John better be waiting for me.

I never thought about just how much work it would be to jump down three stories worth of steps, but if I leaned against the railing I could manage to jump two or three steps at a time. I continued to control my breathing as I went down. I was at the last landing before I knew it.

I jumped a few more times when I heard the door from upstairs open and footsteps came down the stairwell hurriedly.

I started to go faster busting out the exit door and into the lobby. The main door was only a few feet away, I could taste freedom on the tip of my tongue.

"It's her! Hurry up!" Shit. They were coming quicker. I ran the best I could to the door, almost falling down. I busted out onto the cold streets of Gotham stumbling as I went. Sure enough John's cruiser was sitting at the corner.

I could see his face from where I was. I must of looked terrible because it was almost like he went into shock. He crawled over to the passenger seat and shoved the door open and I jumped in and slammed the door. "Go!" I yelled.

The two men burst through the doors as Blake took off into the streets. They ran after us for a block than gave up. I was free.

"Jesus Christ Elise! What happened to you?" He looked down at me quickly then back to the road. "Keep you eyes on the road and get to your apartment already. Answers come later." He sped off and we were there in no time.

When we got there he came over and helped me out of the car putting an arm around my back and pulling my arm around his, trying to help me the best he could. He looked down at me. "You know you scared the crap out of me calling me like that?" I just nodded and concentrated on the task of walking into the elevator.

Once we got into the elevator he let me go so I could lean against the railing of the moving machine. He then looked at me closely taking in my haggard appearance. I guess I did look a little rough around the edges. My hair was haphazardly pulled back and my clothes were wrinkled badly, I probably needed a shower too.

When the elevator doors opened up I began to hop down the hall. I was stopped dead in my tracks by John though when he pulled out a key in front of the door I was standing at. He unlocked it then put his arm out welcoming me to his home.

I leaned against the wall and walked to a seat not far from the entrance to the apartment. It was small but, very home-y in this place. The living room and kitchen were combined in one large room and there were doors leading off to where I guessed his bedroom was.

He put his keys down and took his jacket off throwing it on to the couch and turn to peer at me.

"So you gonna tell me what happened after you went down into the sewers?"

So I told him everything. I told him how I was taken down into the sewers and met Bane. I told him about how he questioned me and broke my leg and finished with my time at Daggett's house. He looked at me somewhat satisfied with what I had told him.

"So how many men do you think are following him?" That was the detective side of himself acting out.

"I don't know. A hundred maybe more. I never really got the full tour Johnny." He looked at me and smirked. "Well Gordon will be happy to know that your out." I replied quickly, "Wait so you told no one what you were doing tonight? You could have died John! That would have been two officers gone. Dead! And nobody would have known where you were! Your so stu-" He cut me off by taking my arms and squeezing them close to my body, reminding me of my encounter with Bane. I looked up at him quickly.

"Listen it was worth it. If the station would have gotten involved you wouldn't have made it out of there. It was better with just me knowing okay? I'll tell Gordon tomorrow. No doubt he will want to keep this quiet. You'll probably have to lay low here for a couple of days anyways."

So Gordon was alive. Good.

I concentrated on bringing my heart rate down and breathing slowly before I talked again. "Well now that that's settled do you have anything I can eat?" He let go of my arms and smiled at me before he walked over and opened his fridge pulling out some leftover pizza and throwing it in the microwave.

"Okay and you need to change. You are not walking around my house looking like that." I looked at him with an annoyed look on my face. "And what exactly do you have in mind?"

"I've got just the thing." He walked over to the door that led to his room. I heard scuffling from the inside. Two minutes later he emerged holding a t-shirt and some ragged sweatpants. "It's not quite your size but I think it will work." He offered them to me and I took them. "Where's a bathroom?"

He pointed to the door beside his bedroom and I hobbled over to it.

FIfteen minutes later I emerged from the bathroom with a clean face and fresh clothes on. I felt much better and I probably looked it too. John was sitting on the couch with two pieces of pizza and some water sitting on the coffee table.

I sat down beside him and he turned on the tv and started flicking through channels. I ate the pizza quickly savoring each bite as if it was my last. Who knew someone could love pizza that much?

Once I was finished I leaned back and started to watch tv. John and I were silent. Just sitting there was comforting enough. I don't know when I ended up falling asleep, but when I did I accepted it gratefully.

* * *

Another chapter done! I can't begin to thank all of you enough for all the favorites, followings, and reviews. Ya'll are seriously the reason I write this! I couldn't do it without you guys! So what did you think? Drop a comment in the review section! I have HUGE plans for this story! It started out as this small, simple idea and now it is so much more. I can't wait to share it with you all! Until Next Time,

xXTron'sGirl13Xx :)


	4. A Chance to Smile

Okay so before I start, yes this chapter is really short by my standards. The reason is, next chapter is gonna be like really important and big, and well its gonna be really filled up! So this chapter establishes a few things. Thing of it as a calm before the storm type chapter. And I am so so so sorry about the wait! It was my dad's birthday the day before last then I had to go to a friends, and well I was really busy so I couldn't write until this morning! So Next chapter is gonna be really really good. Hopefully.

Also you get Bane's point of view in this chapter! I'm really really undecided whether I like what I did or not. To me it just doesn't seem quite right. But give it a try. Let me stop rambling on now! And here you go, Chapter 4!

* * *

I woke up the next morning in comfort. I hadn't slept so well since before the sewers, it was something I could get used too. Warm sheets enveloped me into the bed as rays of light hit my face and I did something rare, I smiled.

When I finally decided to roll over it finally hit me that I was in a bed and not on the couch in John's apartment. Why did he put me in here? I would have easily taken the couch, anything would have done at the moment. Maybe it was the gentleman in John that everybody said they saw in him.

I pulled the covers off me and slung them at the edge of the bed and took a deep breath. I was beginning to hobble up when I saw a pair of crutches propped up against the wall across from me. So he just kept on getting nicer and nicer. I jumped up and grabbed them placing them under my arms and went to through the door to find something to satisfy my now grumbling stomach.

When I reached the kitchen counter I saw John's phone sitting on a piece of paper. I picked it up and saw my name on it. I thought people only wrote those kinda notes in movies, maybe I was wrong. I unfolded it and went to read what it said.

_Elise,_

_Use the phone to call your phone whenever you wake up. I have it. Good thing you left it at the station that night. Stop smirking and just dial the number._

_-John_

The cheeky bastard, knew I would be smirking. Well that shows you how well he knows me. I picked up the phone and pressed the unlock button. His wallpaper was the standard issued background that everybody had, how boring, I would have to change that later. I found the contacts button and scrolled down the very short list to the E's. There my name was in all its glory, Elise. I pressed the call button and held it up to my ear.

He picked up on the second ring. "Hey, I know you were kidnapped and all, but still, waking up at lunch time is a little late don't you think?" He always knew how to get me aggravated. "Well Good Afternoon to you to Johnny." I said sarcastically.

"So listen I'm going to get lunch at Mcdonalds, you want a salad right?" That was another thing I hated about being on patrols with Blake everyday, he knew what I ate at every damn restaurant in Gotham.

"How did you know?" I joked. "Lucky guess." He was one for joking today wasn't he?

"Anyways," He kept on, "I talked to Gordon this morning, I'll talk to you about it when I get home, Okay?" He sounded expectant.

"Where else am I gonna go? I'll see you. Bye." I got a bye in return and then that conversation was concluded.

I went and sat on the couch reaching for the television remote and turning on the television. Fifteen minutes of Teen Mom later John walked through the door. "Oh please tell me you don't actually watch that stuff!" I turned and laughed at him. "Hey to you too." He looked at me and grinned.

He brought over the bag and began pulling out food. I got a salad while he got a double cheeseburger, same old same old. "Thanks for the crutches by the way. I seriously needed those." He looked at me and said, "Thought you would. So, about Gordon, he said to tell you that he doesn't know how the heck you survived all that and he's glad your out. He isn't telling anybody else about it though, word gets out about you being out and things could turn bad." I looked at him with confusion in my eyes.

"Like how?" "Like Bane coming and finding you bad. You ever thought of what he is gonna think about this when he finds out? Where is he anyways?"

So he all the sudden he thinks I am a Bane expert or something. "Last time I checked I wasn't his personal assistant." He rolled his eyes and got up going towards the kitchen. He threw away the remains of his food and put on his jacket to leave. "Don't get into to much trouble while I'm gone." He smirked and looked at me.

"Wouldn't dream of it without you Johnny Boy." Then he deserted me as quick as he came, leaving like a flash of lightening.

* * *

Emerging from the back of the black van I walked towards the entrance to Daggett's apartment.

Bruce Wayne had been disposed of into the pits of hell. Batman was out of the picture, now Gotham's hopes would rise higher than ever only to be crushed in the end. The League of Shadows would finally turn Gotham to ashes.

Walking into the old apartment of that weasel I saw my men sitting watching television. A great way to keep watch on the Officer. I cleared my throat and walked forward.

"Where would our friend be?" They turned to me and looked at me frowning, oh how easily they gave their emotions away. I tried one more time, "Where is she?" I said with a darker tone to my voice.

"Sh- She got away," almost a whisper to my ears, I hoped they did not deceive me.

"And how gentlemen did she get away?" I now realized the problem in this situation. Who knew where the girl had gone? I had not had my chance to break her yet. This was not what we needed at a time like this.

"She got away in the night. Sh-She outsmarted us, found a hole in the schedule." I walked forward now. Failure would not do here. Failure brought weakness, weakness was pain, and that was not to happen here unless inflicted by me.

"So a woman with a broken leg was able to get away when you two weren't watching. Remind me why you are here again." They looked at each other, somehow comprehending just what they had done by letting the woman get away. I started again before they could get a word out, "You were stationed here to watch over the girl. Obviously you can't follow orders. That is not tolerated here." At that moment my hands shot to the shorter of the twos neck, i felt the bone snap in my grip.

As he fell to the floor the other man started to plea for his life, typical in men like him, not true members of the organization. I grabbed his neck with one hand and slowly watched the life drain away from his eyes. "Goodbye." He then too fell to the floor making a thud as he hit the wood. I stepped over the bodies and turned around looking at my entourage as I did so.

"Now we have a fire to start." As I made my way to the elevator in the wall I thought about the next event that was going to happen. As the elevator door closed Barsad's voice suddenly filled the space, "What do we do about the girl?" All eyes were on me as I readjusted my vest. I looked up and at them. "Don't worry about the girl. She will come back to me." They then looked away, their question had been answered. Yes, Elise Tanner would be returning to me soon.

She didn't know her true pain yet, and who was I to deny her the opportunity to learn it?

* * *

So what did yah think? Please tell me what you thought of Bane cause I have to write him again next chapter and I want it to be better! So review? Pretty please? You don't know how much it makes my day! And this story officially has more reviews then any of my stories! I know that this isn't as many reviews as other stories but it still makes me so excited! So thanks for all the reviews, favorites, and follows!

One more question for yah as well! Out of the three of these which is your favorite? Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, or Phantom of the Opera? It matters too! So sound off in the review section or message me your answer! I'm not promising anything, but I am almost positive that chapter 5 will be up today! So see you then!

xXTron'sGirl13Xx


	5. True Pain

**So... I lied when I said it would be up that day.. But! I think you guys will really enjoy this chapter! I'm very proud of it even though it is probably riddled with mistakes! This chapter is the start of the fun :) So read on... Chapter 5!**

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When you are stuck in a house with nothing to do what do you do? Some people just allow themselves to do nothing, letting their day go to waste, sitting around.

Me on the other hand, I analyze everything, find patterns, pretty much go all detective mode on it. I can't help it. It's just the way I am.

But it being John's house made it even better. I thought I knew the kid but some of my suspicions were proven wrong. The biggest one being, he didn't seem to have much of a life. I mean don't get me wrong John must have some kind of friend other than me but it didn't appear that way at all. I especially thought he would have a girlfriend, because truth is John was ridiculously cute. He was that adorable guy, sweet, the type of guy you wanted to have as a husband. To think he couldn't get a girl seemed impossible to me unless he had a shy side that I didn't know about.

He also seemed to have a really good eye when it came to interior decorating. He would probably kill me if I said that to his face but it was true. Every piece of furniture, blanket, curtain, and decorative object in this apartment matched. It had a very nice feel to it, very warm and comforting. The perfect place to come home to if you were a cop.

I went over to the one table that actually had pictures on them. One was of him in his uniform, the standard picture that everybody in the service has to take once they complete training. I hated mine. The second one was of him and an old woman, no doubt she was someone at the boys home he was from. She seemed like a mother almost in the picture, standing there looking proud beside John in his uniform. It seemed to me that it was the only personal photo John had here. But then I turned to find a third photo.

In the third photo John was dressed in a suit and was smiling holding a drink in his hand. Beside him stood me. Where had this been taken? I think I would have remembered a picture of us being taken, I racked my mind trying to find an answer. Then it hit me, the Christmas party last year. Yes. That was the dress I had to go out and buy because I didn't have one. I was smiling almost laughing it seemed I picked up the picture getting and even closer look.

I started to trace my body in the picture when I was interrupted by what seemed like two people storming into the room. I quickly set the picture down hoping whoever it was didn't see me inspecting it. I turned to face the intruders to find John and the Commissioner walking over to the couch and turning on the television. John was taking his coat off and I broke the silence.

"Well Hey to you guys too." They then stopped what they were doing and looked at me. I looked from John to Jim examining the look in their eyes. Something was going wrong. I could feel it. "Well don't just stand their." I paused as they continued to stare in my direction. I waved my hands at them. "Carry on." I used my crutches to reach the couch arm where I sat on the corner and propped up the crutches waiting for an explanation.

They quickly turned to GCN and began to lose themselves in the news at hand, I took the hint and listened to the broadcaster. "A new criminal has taken Gotham City as their home. Making a catastrophic explosion into today's Rogues game. The man blew up the football field, preceded to walk in, make a speech then exit the stadium. Before we show you footage of the game we will tell you that this masked man seems to be going by the name of Bane. So what does he want of Gotham? Let's see if you can figure it out."

I started to breathe heavily. So this was his plan. I didn't even know what the plan consisted of, but it was his and knowing Bane it would lead to nothing but pain and suffering. As the Commissioner and John continued to watch the newscast I only caught bits and pieces because of the terror that ran through my body. This man was the real deal, and I had escaped luckily before it was to late.

"Identify yourself to the world." Bane was talking now to a man on the ruined Gotham Rogues stadium. "Doctor Leonid Pavel, Nuclear physicist." The other man had an accent, maybe Russian. I heard bits and pieces of the audio. Nuclear Bomb. Blast with a 6 mile radius.

Then he snapped the doctor's neck much like I feared he was going to do to me if he ever found me. Bane continued, "This bomb is mobile, and the identity of the triggerman is a mystery. One of you holds the detonator."

What kind of sick joke was he pulling? A nuclear bomb is in Gotham. Gotham.

"At the first sign of interference from the outside world, those people who are kept here do flee, this anonymous Gothamite, this unsung hero, will trigger the bomb." The voice was getting to me now, graveling and mechanical. Just how messed up in the head was Bane?

"And Gotham, if a Officer Elise Tanner is not handed over to me in two days time, your precious city will be in ashes. So, return to your homes, hold your families close and wait." He paused and looked out over the crowd seeming quite pleased with himself.

"Tomorrow you claim what is rightfully yours."

He said it like it was all addressed to me. I would earn what was "rightfully mine," punishment for me leaving his fortress. Why was I important? I didn't know where exactly underground his men were. It wasn't like I could report it to the police. Why did he need me back down there in the pits of despair?

"Elise," I was interrupted in thought by a hand on my shoulder. "Elise, it's okay." John was comforting me, or giving an effort. I looked down to see that I was shaking. Gordon looked up at me and said, "I don't know what you did to get on his bad side kid, but you're not going back to him." What choice did I have? It was either the life of one girl that know one knew about, or the fate of Gotham City. Hadn't that been what I had signed up for anyways? To lay down my life in the line of duty?

John was still there looking at me like I would break with the slightest touch. I was a cop, I didn't break, I just got scuffed up around the edges. I caught him off guard when I looked up into his eyes, fear showing in my face.

"I'm going." He went from gentle to mad in all but 2 seconds. He started raving. "Absolutely not! We aren't giving in to his demands! Do you honestly think I'm going to just let you walk back behind the enemy lines when I just got you back? How stupid can you be? If you go back what's next? You already have a broken leg. I think I'm afraid to see what you come back to me as next time!"

I grabbed him by the shoulders and yanked him around to look at me. "What's one life to a thousand others John?" He looked at me like he was a bout to cry, like he was losing something dear to him. There was a part of me deep down that wanted to fix that look, to go and say that everything was going to be okay for right now, but it was never okay in Gotham.

Gordon's eyes stayed glued to the screen picking up every possible piece of information that he could.

"We will talk about this later." He said exasperatingly. He proceeded to go over where Gordon was and continued to watch the news.

My mind couldn't process anything. It was all big blank. Bane was looking for me, threatening to kill every man, woman, and child if I didn't come forward. What choice did I have? I had to go. It was unrealistic for me not to go. I didn't want to, I didn't want to know what he had in mind me. I knew I would end up breaking, lying there in his cold hands. It frightened me more than anything in the world, more than death. Because a death with him would be so much worse. It didn't matter whether it was just the snap of my neck or the slowly drug out torture and mutilating of my body, the thought of it made me want to put a gun to my head, and I didn't have the guts to do that.

It made me wonder what really brought me pain. I was guessing I would find out soon enough. Where would I even go to find him? He wanted me back yet didn't tell me where to go. I wondered and wondered and came to a conclusion. Daggett's house. It's the only place I knew that had even the most remote relation to Bane and his army.

Time went by with the blink of an eye. The next time I remember hearing signs of another being near me was when Gordon and Blake walked back into the apartment. What has this man done to me? Scared me into a state in which I couldn't remember the time of day.

I looked out the window and saw nothing but darkness with the silver lighting of the moon trying to find it's place in the sky. John came over and said something that I couldn't here from me toning out the world around me. I then found myself being picked up from the cocoon I had made myself on the couch, being carried through the doors to John's room. I was set down onto the silky sheets. I looked up and towards the door seeing Gordon standing there leaning against it, hands dug deep into his pockets.

"Just sleep Elise." Gordon looked at me like a father would. I smiled and nodded then turned my head to meet John's brown eyes. I took in his facial expression as I heard Jim shut the door, muffled footsteps walking away.

The familiar creases in his forehead were wrinkled up into little lines. He looked at me with some sort of guilt, maybe regret. I couldn't quite tell. He was slumped over, his button down crinkling up even more than it already was. Confusion hit me. Where was his uniform?

"Why aren't you wearing your uniform?" He looked at me, his lips trying to come up into a smile as he walked over to the other side of the bed easing himself onto it and turning on the TV.

"Guess you didn't get the memo. I've been promoted, working with Gordon now. You don't have to worry about patrols with me anymore." He turned through the channels trying to find something that wasn't about today's events. Couldn't even turn it to a late night show without hearing about Gotham's newest criminal.

Silence went on for what seemed like hours. What do I say? He seemed mad enough about what I said earlier. I didn't want to see him mad again. So at that moment my mouth functioned quicker than my mind. I whispered a sentence, "Why do you have a picture of us in there Johnny?"

He seemed caught off guard with the break of the silence, even more so with the question. "Because, your my friend Elise." He wasn't telling me something. I knew him well enough to know that. He wasn't looking at the TV anymore, but at me. "And your the closest thing I've got to a sister, a friend, a-" He looked down. "Never mind."

I let it go. I wasn't the type to pry around in someone else's life. "Who was the woman. In the other picture?" He smiled and looked up. "You should know that. It's Maggie. She raised me. I wouldn't be me without her." He said so proud like. I smiled. This was the John I knew. Always happy, always smiling.

"I'm sorry John." Just then I realized how childish I sounded. Like I was 7 again. Seeing Gotham for the first time, full of excitement and wonder. But this was the confused part of that 7 year old, asking her mom why daddy wasn't with us. Asking when he would come and stay with us. Mom assured me that he would be here in time and I excepted it. I didn't learn of my father's fate until I was a year or two older.

John looked at me and smiled. "You've got nothing to be sorry for. You know that. You couldn't help that you were held down there with _him._" He didn't dare say his name, not wanting to see the reaction it brought me and I was thankful for it.

"But I have to go back and don't argue. I'm not letting Gotham be demolished and know that it was my fault. He was serious now. "I don't want you to go though. Does that mean anything to you?" Did it? "Of course it does John I mean-" He shakes his head getting slightly irritated. "No, you don't get what I mean do you Elise?" He took a breath turning to face me, searching me for some sort of realization to hit me in the face. "Is it so hard to believe that I may like you Elise?" "I hope you would. You have to put up with me to much to not like me." He smirked and mumbled something to the air. I didn't like how he was addressing me like I was clueless.

"No, more like I care for you Elise. Whether your safe or not, whether your okay. Jesus, I'm not good at this."

That's when I understood. He _liked _me liked me. But how, no one could like **me.** I brought pain to the people close to me. God, I was about to do it again.

I looked up at him with a pleading look. Please don't do this to me, **please**. He shook his head. "It's okay you know." He sunk back down into the bed seeming relieved. "Everybody's allowed to care about people. Even you and me, no matter how screwed up we are."

I stood up and walked away from the bed leaning on the wall space between two windows. I slid down to the floor holding my head in my hands.

"I'm not Johnny." I looked up, "That's what you don't understand." I felt tears running down the smooth skin of my cheek. "Every time I try to care i just get hurt in the end. You would get hurt in the end. And I don't want to hurt you Johnny I don't." Thats when I couldn't hold it in anymore. My body started to heave and protest at the sobs that came.

Here I was looking weak, almost pathetic in front of this man who says that I mean something to this world. And what does he do? He comes and comforts me. I don't deserve comfort. I heard the hushed voice entering my ears reassuring me that everything was okay, that i would be okay. He wrapped his arms around me pulling me to his body. I flinched away. I couldn't let myself do this. Not now.

He didn't care though. He pulled me back to him, drawing circles on my arm and my back. He says he cares but he doesn't know how much he's hurting me. Is this what Bane meant about holding your loved ones close?

I cried and cried for who knows how long and John was there stroking my hair and rocking me back and forth, hold this broken girl in his arms. How could he stand it?

Eventually I faded away not caring about what was holding me to this Earth anymore.

* * *

I woke up the next morning and instantly opened up my tear stained eyes. I was in John's bed, wrapped up in sheets and a blanket. I don't know how but a smile graced my lips as I felt the warm sun fall down onto my body. Once I became more and more accustomed to my waking I realized I was in desperate need of a shower. I went to get up, rolling over to the side of the bed but being stopped. I looked down to see what was bounding me to the bed. I saw an arm around me. John.

I rolled over to look at him. He seemed at peace in his sleep, smiling like the John I was used too. I saw how his arms came and wrapped around my stomach, like he did it all the time. I smiled. Only if he found someone worthy of him, then he could be happy, not have a care in the world. But that couldn't happen to anyone in Gotham, no one in Gotham was worthy enough to be blessed with that kind of life.

I shimmied out of his grip then tip-toed to the bathroom, grabbing my freshly washed clothes off the corner of the dresser as I went. As I got in the shower I let the water float down my body watching the individual beads form images as they went. I loved the warm streams hitting my body, massaging into my scalp.

I washed my hair quickly and went to dry off. The towel drying every inch of my body. I put on my clothes and wrapped my towel around my head and stumbled out into the living area going to find some coffee in the mess of the kitchen. I grabbed my crutches at the side of the couch when Gordon spoke up.

"Love the new look Elise." I looked over at Gordon. "That grey is showing more and more everyday isn't it boss?" He smiled and went back to his coffee. I found the pot and a clean mug and filled it up. I sipped at it and smiled after every bit. How much did I love coffee?

At that moment John made his entrance into the room. "We gotta get going. Me and Gordon are going to go find Forley, find out just how much of the city has been affected so far. What officers we have left." I looked up at him not wanting to see how he was looking at me.

He looked at me no differently then he would have two days ago. Nothing had happened last night I told myself. Nothing. He grabbed his suit jacket and nodded at Gordon who got up and came over to the door.

He looked back over at me this time showing me what he was really feeling. "I'll be back soon." He looked to see if Gordon was still in the apartment then came forward and hugged me awkwardly. He backed away and took one last glance at me before walking out the door.

I was alone. I went over to the couch sitting down and taking a breath before turning on the television. I watched a episode of some mystery show when Breaking News flashed onto the screen.

"Greetings Gotham. We now have new footage of the masked man named Bane breaking out all prisoners of Blackgate Prison. And heres the video."

I went numb as I watched Bane make his speech. He had one of the Batman's tumblers. When he shot open a hole into the prison i jumped. Not long after he finished talking prisoners started to pile out onto the streets. No one was safe anymore. And there it was again. A warning to me. To show myself, to come back to where I belonged.

I was coming.

I pulled myself up with my crutches, limbing to the door. I stopped as I got there and turned to look at the apartment one last time. Then I did something that surprised myself. I went over to the picture of me and John and undid the back of it. I slipped the picture out and put the frame back in its rightful spot.

I then found John's uniform jacket. His last named sewn into the right pocket. I slipped the photo into the inside pocket and put the jacket on.

I hobbled to the counter finding a scrap sheet of paper and a pen. I thought about what to say.

_John,_

_You will see me again. Save this city John. Then I will be all yours._

_~Elise_

After putting the note down I hobbled out the door, shutting it behind me. I hoped it would happen, I hoped I could allow him to care for me one day. But I wasn't ready for that yet.

As I went down the streets of Gotham making my way to John Daggett's apartment I was shocked at what I saw. The tables had turned in Gotham. My question was where was my place on that table?

* * *

I stood looking out over Gotham from the high windows of my new palace.

"She came back." I turned to look at the person who dare ruin my silence. I was listening to the sounds of Gotham crumbling in my grasp. Feeding it hope was such an easy thing to do. These people would believe anything you told them, they were weak minded and fools. The two people who seemed to have their heads on their shoulders were being dealt with by me. One was already in his new hell. Now the second one had arrived.

Barsad stood in front of me. "She came only carrying this." He handed me a picture. It was of her and a young man in a suit. I crinkled it up and addressed him, "Bring her too me." As he walked away I walked back to my spot at the window.

I unwrinkled the picture and took a closer look at it. Who was this man and what was his importance? It only added to the questions I had to ask of her. I turned as I heard the elevator doors opening. I took the picture and began to tear it in half.

When I looked up and saw the look she was giving me I knew I had done something wrong. I smirked under my mask. This would be all to easy. I dropped the ripped pieces to the floor and walked forward planning out my next speech.

She looked up at me almost questioning me, daring me to speak.

"Welcome back, my dear."

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**Well, I personally loved writing this! I hope you guys liked it! I am really proud of it and with that being said tell me what you think in the review section! You guys honestly blow me away each time you review. I love hearing all of your words! Whether kind or critical! It helps me so much when I go to write! **

**So, now I am going to start to do a question of the chapter type deal. This chapter I am asking what was your favorite scene or line from The Dark Knight Rises? I'll answer my own question next chapter! So before I go I want to say thank you again for all of your support! Leave me some love and hopefully next chapter will be out soon enough! Until then,**

**xXTron'sGirl13Xx**


	6. Back Behind Enemy Lines

**Well I got this chapter to you a little quicker! It's mostly filler in my opinion... But I hope you enjoy it all the same! So heres Chapter 6!**

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I couldn't read Bane's eyes as he walked towards me, it scared me immensely. "Welcome back, my dear." He seemed happy about me being back, probably ready to break my other leg. I used my crutches to maneuver myself to the couch. Bane looked at me taking in my appearance. He payed particular attention to my jacket, John's jacket. He came up and grabbed the jacket pocket, yanking me up in the process.

I winced in pain, going to grab my leg. "Watch it would you?" I looked up at his face, he towered above me. I instantly regretted speaking to him in that manor.

"So," He paused processing what he was going to say, "I see not all officers are underground, are they?" He began to talk once more before I could answer his question "So who is this Officer? It looks to be a mans, considering it is a few sizes to large on your frame." He turn to look at the floor behind him, still having a tight grip on me so I would not fall.. I looked to see what he was searching for and laid my eyes on the picture, the picture Barsad had taken from me.

Well at least I saw half of it. There was the half that had me in that midnight blue cocktail dress. I remembered how silly I felt in that dress, I felt like I was in high school again. It floated around me and fell just above my knees, sparkles littering the skirt of it. It was a spaghetti strapped dress that looked like it could have been designer, I only bought it for $60. I remembered back to that night now, smiling at the thought of actually going out.

* * *

_Why the heck had I bought this dress? It looked more like a prom dress than a party dress. Oh well, it would have to due now. I walked up the steps of the small banquet hall Gordon and a few of the men in town hall had rented out. What was the use in throwing a Christmas party for the cops anyways? I don't think we would know how to have fun even if we tried. _

_As I went through the foyer and was greeted by Jim and the mayor, they thanked me for coming. I walked farther into the hall and found where the main event was to be held I began to look up and around the area. There was a section that had what seemed to be some kind of dance floor. Great, if anyone dared ask me to dance I swear I would bite their head off. I saw the area that was loaded with tables everywhere. _

_Officers walked around with their wives, or their hired dates. It made me sick sometimes seeing them walk around with those girls. I found a somewhat empty table near the back and sat down, crossing my legs as I did so. I peered around the room trying to come to some conclusions on how many people were actually showing up. It was a good turn out, most of the station was there. _

_After sitting there and being served a glass of wine I was starting to get bored. But not for long._

_"So Elise Tanner comes to the Christmas party? Has the fat lady sung?" "Oh shut it John. You know I don't like these things." He put up his arms, a sign of surrender. He laughed as he pulled up a chair beside me, lounging back. _

_He was wearing a charcoal gray suit with a light purple button down. His tie matched his suit and his hair was jelled back like always. He had a familiar smile on his face, his eyes crinkling by the corners in the same way they always did. He was studying me. I could feel his eyes moving over my body, taking in my dress, my heels, the fact that deep down I was still a girl. _

_He looked up at me his face becoming serious once more, "You look nice." "Thanks. It's not really my look though is it?" _

_"Nah, it suits you just fine." He had a smug look on his face. "Nice to know your a girl under all the guns and pepper spray." I shoved his arm to the side. We sat there in silence watching as people got drunk or in some cases drunker. It really was pathetic at moments._

_John then went to get up looking at me as he did so, he held out his hand. "You wanna dance?" He had to be kidding. I looked at him with a grim expression. "Seriously?" _

_"Oh come on Tanner, your seriously gonna turn down my amazing dancing skills?" I rolled my eyes but got up knowing I wouldn't hear the end of it if I didn't. He led me to the dance floor then pulled me a little closer to him then I would have asked for, gently taking my waist and my hand. As we began to dance John looked quite amused with himself. "I can't believe I actually got you out here. The tough Elise Tanner dancing at a party. Where are the history books when you need them?" _

_I smiled. John was always one for joking. "I'm surprised you didn't bring someone yourself." He looked at me, questioning me. "Guy like you should have the ladies waiting in line." He smiled, "No your confusing me with Bruce Wayne aren't you? Now you really are going crazy aren't you?" _

_I laughed. We moved around to the music for a minute more then the song ended. He pulled me over towards the bar and ordered a drink, leaning against the counter lazily. I stood there awkwardly not knowing how to stand there in a dress and heels. John obviously understood my discomfort because as soon as his drink was ready he put his arm around my waste and started to lead me towards the tables._

_"Do you know how confused you look right now?" He said almost under his breathe. "Excuse me, I didn't take the class on being a society woman." His lips turned up for the millionth time that night. _

_"You know I think my humor is starting to rub off on you." I rolled my eyes. "Sure John." I laughed some more. I was genuinely having a good time. It was a change but I liked it. _

_At that moment A flash went off beside us. I looked up trying to find the source. _

_"Seriously Jim? We're taking pictures at this thing?" He looked down from his camera, "We've gotta have some kind of proof that someone had a good time don't we?" I smirked. Of course I would be the one that would be caught on camera having a good time. "Can I see it?" I asked like a 5 year old would. Jim nodded and handed the camera over. _

_John leaned in close to me looking at the picture of us. "Oh I am so getting a copy of this." He chuckled lightly. "No your not John. If I catch you with this picture I'll..." I trailed off, what could I threaten him with? "What? Is it a crime to see you having a good time? Smiling?" I nodded._

_He just laughed even more at that. "Whatever you say Elise." He then guided me back to our table so we could listen to Gordon and the Mayor._

* * *

"And I have a feeling we see the same young man in this picture." He turned back to look down at me. I could tell he was satisfied with the observations he had made. I refused to acknowledge his statement. "So I am correct?" I looked up at his face. His eyes looking at me with an emotion I could not name.

"Aren't you the one for conversation today, my dear?" He sat me back down on the couch then walked to face the window again. "It doesn't matter anyways. All you need do now is listen."

I stood their and listened to the silence around me. It didn't do much for me at all. I spoke even though it would probably end badly. "What do you want from me Bane?" He turned seemingly surprised that I used his name when I addressed him.

"You intrigue me. But if you need more reason, you have seen to much, therefore you must stay here. Don't worry you will be treated like a person should, with kindness. But don't think this will always be easy." He sensed my uneasiness then, watching me move around in my current seat. "Yes Ms. Tanner, you have much reason to worry. Worry for yourself." He paused. "Worry for your friend," he said nodding at my jacket. "But most of all worry for the fate of your beloved city."

He walked towards the elevator, pressing the button beside it. "I will see you after while Officer. And I will warn you that it should be in your greatest interests to be ready to chat." He gave me a quick nod before boarding the elevator and going off to who knows where.

I waited a good minute before falling to the floor crawling over to the other half of the picture that lay on the floor. I picked it up and look at the rip. It had one of my arms in the shot but other than that John stood in the picture looking at me with a smile on his face. I shoved it back into my jacket pocket before Barsad walked back in.

"You will be staying just down the hall. A bigger room then I believe your used to have." He led me in. I found that the lock was on my side of the door this time. Interesting.

I took in the space around me and found it quite comforting. The walls were a warm brown while the bed had a silky red duvet cover on it. The television was mounted onto the wall and I found the same books laying out on the dresser as there was the time before. I ran my hand over the surface and shivered at how cold it was.

"You should find your clothes in the drawers." I went and opened one, sure enough finding my favorite sweatshirt lying there folded up neatly. "And I'm guessing you can't tell me how the heck you found out where I lived, can you?" I looked over at Barsad. "That would defeat the purpose Miss."

"Well can't say I didn't ask you did I?" He swiftly nodded in acknowledgement and then walked out of the room shutting the door behind him.

There was a huge chair placed in the corner of the room beside a small table. Also I was blessed with the privilege of having a window this time around. For someone who was trying to destroy Gotham he had a very weird way of holding someone hostage, but then again wasn't the whole city being held hostage?

I went through the drawers and found some shorts and a T-shirt that fit me nicely. I went through the door at the edge of my room finding a small bathroom. What do yah know? All my cosmetics were there as well, not to mention my shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. It's like they took my apartment and dumped it here. But I wasn't going to be one to complain.

I changed to the new outfit swiftly depositing my old clothes in the corner of the bathroom. I took John's jacket and placed it in the chair in the corner of my room.

I went and curled up on the bed setting my crutches against the wall. I turned the TV on and began looking through the channels finding a channel with Mean Girls on it and settling down into the bed.

I was strangely at ease with myself then. A good way to go to sleep.

* * *

When I woke up there was a dress hanging on the side of the crutches. I recognized it immediately. Moonlight Blue. What did he have in plan now? There was a note attached the the hangar with a piece of tape.

_Thought you would like to have this back. _

What's that supposed to mean? All these criminals have serious mental issues. There was an underlying meaning to everything, that was something I had learned in the force. I got up and pulled the crutches to my body and held the dress in my left hand. I took it into the small closet off the bathroom and hung it in the corner.

It was already just three hours into me being here and I was already bored. I decided to walk back into the living area to see if I could find anything there.

I obviously walked into a conversation because as soon as I made my way into the room everything went quiet. I looked up and saw Bane peering at me. I spoke up.

"Am i interrupting something?" He seemed to be talking to a younger woman. Maybe a little older than me. She had long brown hair and a slim body. She looked like she meant business and I instantly wished I had stayed in my room. What kind of cop was I? Cowering away at the site of someone I didn't know.

"You are just fine Elise. Me and Ms. Kyle were finishing up some business here. We will be done soon." He sounded very serious, more serious than I had ever seen him. No doubt I had interrupted something important. I nodded then turned to limp back to my room. Shutting the door as I got there.

* * *

John Blake arrived home later than he expected he would that night. After finding Forley and then running some patrols around Gotham, he took Gordon to his apartment then made it a point to get back to his.

As he walked through his door locking it back behind him a sudden relief washed over him when he realized his apartment building hadn't been one to be raided, probably because this wasn't the wealthy section of Gotham.

"Elise I'm back." He said as he walked into the main apartment, eyes roving over the room looking for a woman's body. "Elise?" He walked farther into the apartment making sure he checked the couch before walking into his strewn out bedroom. Still no Elise.

He jiggled the handle of the bathroom before walking in. Panicking now he walked into the bedroom looking for some evidence to where she may be. His police jacket was missing off the coat hook on the back of his door.

He burst back into the main room walking over to his kitchen counter seeing the note she had left him. He almost tore it when he picked it up. He read it over several times before walking over and sitting on the couch, kicking the coffee table out as he did so.

"Goddammit Elise." He took his head in his hands running his fingers through his already astray locks. As he leaned back onto the couch only one thing ran through his mind.

If saving this city was the one way to get her back, then it would be done.

* * *

**Oh my gosh. I want to start out by saying a huge thank you for all the reviews, favorites, and follows! You all continue to amaze me with how much you like this story! It truly makes my day, and it is probably why I got this chapter out so quickly.**

**So here's my answer to the first and second chapter questions I've asked you! Out of the three books well... I love them all! So much! But at the moment I am leaning towards Wuthering Heights, just because there is a wonderful adaptation done by Masterpiece Classics. Heathcliff is played by Tom Hardy :) I will never view him the same way after watching him portray that role! And My favorite scene in DKR... Let me think... It would probably be between three scenes.. I Just can't pick my favorite! It is between the first Bane Vs. Batman showdown, the ending of the movie (John Blake's Part:P) anyways, or The part where Selina asks Bruce who he's pretending to be and he says something along the lines of, "Bruce Wayne! Eccentric billionare" I thought it was funny...**

**Anyways I would strongly encourage all of you to find that version of Wuthering Heights and watch it! And My next question to you all is... What do you want to see happen in this story? As always, leave me an answer in the reviews and tell me what you thought of the chapter! I'm kinda of stuck on what to write next so maybe you all can give me an Idea! I'll stop ramblin' now! Until next time, (cookies to you all!)**

**xXTron'sGirl13Xx**


	7. A Confusing Encounter

**So It's finally here! I know this has taken forever but I've been way to busy! New school year rolled along, and I started a new school, new people, more drama. It never gets easier thats for sure! But even though I've been gone this story has still gotten so many views it's crazy! I personally like this chapter a lot even though it's short! Here it is, Chapter 7!**

* * *

Bane was true to his word when he said I would be treated like a human being. I ate like I was supposed too. I had a TV, I had radio; there wasn't much use for either of them anymore. I had my stuff. So why did I still feel like I was being lied too?

He hadn't done anything wrong per say, well other than taking Gotham hostage, but I still felt like there was an alternative motive to me staying here. He said I knew too much. What did that have to do with anything? He ran this city now. Who could I tell anything too?

And that damn bomb wasn't going to go off because no one would dare go over those bridges. They would be shot before they could make it across anyways. But still there was no contact with the outside world. Unless you were head of operations, and that was only one person.

So something was going on. Gotham didn't know the full story, which bothered me more than anything.

Gotham was being made to suffer. These people didn't deserve that.

I had been in this apartment for a week now and had had a fair chance to explore all its rooms and luxuries. By looking around I had found a workout room that had helped me pass the time.

My leg was doing better I could put some pressure on it now and I was still seeing a doctor for therapy daily.

I tried to stay in that room as much as possible no matter what it was for, either toning my upper body or doing exercises for my legs. It took the thought of Gotham being in trouble away, even if it was for only an hour or two.

I never went back to the corridor I used to stay in. I couldn't deal with the thought that I could still be out in the streets doing something towards saving Gotham.

With that being said I spent a lot of time at the bay windows of the apartment, looking down into the streets seeing people in pain, with hope.

I hadn't seen much of Bane what so ever. Other than the first night I was there I had seen him once. He had come to check on me, reminding me of what was happening in the streets below. He would probably come up in the near future.

Another thing to bring up was my current security situation. It was almost inexistent.

I know Bane had somewhat claimed this place as his headquarters, this and city hall, and he was keeping me on the top floor but no one really came into the apartment. There was one man that stood outside the stairway door at all times, but other than that no one was in here, but any visitors and me, if I had them.

I had tried going down the elevator as well. You had to have a key to make it go down.

So it was my place at the top. It had a sense of freedom to it, which was nice, but at the same time I wanted to be able to go down and walk in the streets, breathe some fresh air.

I knew that wasn't going to happen anytime soon though, maybe not at all. I wouldn't get my hopes up though, I refused too. Hope is what he wanted me to have. It would break me in the end. He wanted me to hope for a better Gotham. He wanted me to hope that everyone would be safe, that I could be happy in life.

I wonder what I would be doing if I was still with John. He would probably be out doing all the work, telling me I had to stay cooped up in his apartment while he played hero. I wouldn't do that anyways.

I wonder what John is doing? I wondered why I hadn't seen him walking in the streets like everybody else. He would know where I had to go. But I couldn't let my mind stick on thoughts like that.

I went to sit on the sofa; I was tired from my exercises. I was way to tired of this routine. I did the same thing everyday. It got to repetitive. I needed something else to do or else I might go insane.

At that moment the elevator "dinged" then proceeded to open.

Out stepped Bane, looking as gigantic as usual. I looked up at him and he addressed me, "Ms. Tanner. How are you doing?" He said it in an even tone.

I spoke out loud for what seemed like the first time in weeks, "I'm getting along."

He nodded his head and walked over to the windows. His electronic voice then started back, "I would tell you how things are down below, but it seems like you could perceive what it was like from looking down. So why waste my breath?"

Of course I could tell how Gotham was faring. It was too obvious he was satisfied with himself. Confidence seemed to role off of him in waves. He had a powerful air to himself. Something I don't think anyone could change.

"Any reason you came up?" I had to ask; I didn't see that this was going anywhere.

He snapped around to look at me, assessing me with his eyes, "I thought you needed a dose of human interaction, therefore I came up."

I quickly replied, "Human interaction can be provided by anything that talks you know," I leaned back against the back of the sofa, resting there, "You could have just sent Barsad."

He let out something that seemed like a laugh, odd sounding coming from him, "But you forget Ms. Tanner, you fascinate me. So why send Barsad when I could just talk to you myself?"

I thought of what to ask him next. He always seemed to be so sure of his words, like he had planned the conversation ahead of time and I had been programmed to say my lines.

"And why exactly do I fascinate you so much?" I wanted to hear the answer to this one.

"Your faith in your city Officer. Among many other things." He walked towards me and stopped a few feet away.

"You see I have never met many people with such strong beliefs as you and your little officer friend, so sure that Gotham will come out on top. I haven't seen anyone so sure of it since I broke your winged friend."

Batman. So he had gotten to him too. That's what his plan had been. Break the bat then let Gotham burn. Well that wouldn't happen.

"So that's what you wanted to do." I looked up at him. "Break the Batman. Well It's going to take a whole lot more than that to-"

"What makes you so sure of yourself?" He looked at me quizzically, his eyes dancing; he truly wanted to know what made me tick.

"I have faith in Gotham." I said, uttering it out between clinched teeth. He thought there was no hope didn't he?

"I have faith like Batman does, I have faith like the commissioner does, and like John does. So before you go saying that I'm the only one here that believes in Gotham think again. There are good people here, you just have to look a little bit." I was mad now.

He had pushed me across a line, a line that would probably get me in trouble.

"The police force isn't totally corrupted yet, and when the head of the force is probably the best guy in the force well, there is definitely some room for improvement to occur."

He laughed then, shaking his head as he did so. "Oh, but only if you knew my dear Officer." He walked around the room now, hands behind his back.

"Did you hear my address at the town hall Elise?"

There he went using my first name again.

"What's that got to do with anything?" I was confused, what did his speech have to do with the corrupt?

"My dear child, the head of your force IS the corrupted one." I was baffled, he couldn't be telling the truth.

"Yes James Gordon is part of the biggest lie ever told in Gotham, and so is your beloved bat."

How? How could Gordon be accused with such things? It wasn't right; I didn't believe him. I knew Gordon; he wasn't a liar.

"You're lying." That's all I could say.

He picked me up by the arms again, his huge hands squeezing mine; I could already feel the bruises coming along.

"Listen here girl," he snarled at me, "I may be many things, but I do not lie to my men, or my prisoners for that matter. I am here to tell Gotham's people the truth about their city." He slackened his grip on me, "You will see the truth in time. But until then you shall stay here. I don't need you wondering around the streets until you have given up on your precious commissioner."

So I was going to be able to leave?

It would only be too soon for me to find John again. What was I saying? Bane wasn't going to let me out of his grasp.

"So you're going to let me out," I smirked at the thought.

He dropped me down to the floor then. I brought my knees up to my chest, looking up at the menacing man as I did so.

"Not until I'm sure of your allegiances lying with me, little one. With your training you could be a help to my force." He looked towards the windows, "But of course your leg must be healed as well."

So I would be another pawn in his game? I don't think so.

"Looks like I won't be getting out on the streets then." I leaned back on the couch smiling to myself.

I continued, "My allegiance will always stay with the good guys."

He laughed in that robotic tone, walking away towards the elevator as he did so, "But my darling you shall see in time, we are the good guys."

With that he turned into the elevator, leaving.

That man was so messed up in the head. God only knows how he became that way. It had to do with the mask though; it had too.

I pushed myself back up onto the couch and looked out towards the windows. The sun was setting; purples and pinks littered the sky. I smiled.

Little things like this reminded me that I still lived on this Earth. It showed me that there would be a tomorrow. It reminded me that I was one day closer to freedom of this wretched man.

It reminded me that I was still, well me.

* * *

**What'd yah think? I hope ya'll liked it as much as I did! The tension is somewhat rising between these two!**

**But is it just me or is Elise kinda becoming a bad OC? I mean I know I'm saying that about my own character but when writing the end of this chapter well I don't think she really knows what she believes in at this moment! But we will see where it goes!**

**So what did ya'll like? What didn't ya'll like? Anything you wanna know about Else in particular? I'd be happy to also try to fit in anything about Bane's backstory (My version sorta-kinda) Or about John's motives at the moment. I just wanna know what ya'll wanna read about! **

**So Review, favorite, or follow. I don't care! I just loved seeing those emails come in! Until next time though,**

**xXTron'sGirl13Xx :)**


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